i-PRO Co., formerly known as Panasonic Security, has ushered in Docker container support for its new X Series line of AI-enabled cameras. This upgrade will make a significant contribution to the company's open platform development initiatives by enabling a standardised method for app developers to quickly enhance the AI functions of i-PRO edge devices, the company states.
Docker, known for its secure, containerised environment, simplifies the running of custom applications, making cloud service integration straightforward. Additionally, it ensures robust cybersecurity by creating a protective shell that restricts direct access to the camera's core operating functions, whilst allowing optimum flexibility.
By implementing Docker containers, the modularisation of diverse AI components becomes achievable. Enclosing various functions within separate containers simplifies the management and maintenance of the whole system. It also eases the scaling of the AI components, thanks to Docker's capacity to run multiple instances of containers across an array of distributed edge devices.
Hideo Noguchi, Chief Technical Officer at i-PRO, says that Docker containers enable third-party application providers to cut the time and cost factors linked with the development of customised AI apps. In his words, "Docker containers make tailored analytics development more accessible for everyone."
Noguchi highlights Microsoft's Azure IoT Edge as an example, stating that "it allows developers to design intelligent apps in the cloud and deploy them directly to IoT devices using Docker containers." The Docker layer doesn't only boost ease of access for traditional analytics providers, but also increases the utility of the camera as an IoT data collection point. It ties in video and AI metadata with additional digital transformation objectives.
i-PRO's X Series line of cameras encompasses the most potent AI capabilities, supporting up to nine AI applications. This line is the first to support AI on-site learning, which further fortifies powerful AI features to additional non-AI network cameras. Operators can teach the on-site learning feature to identify specific objects, search for them, or track them, ultimately increasing utility and efficiency.
The X Series also introduces an AI processing relay application, which enables a single camera to add AI metadata to up to three additional non-AI cameras, even those from other manufacturers. By localising multiple AI-based analytics on the edge, the need for costly backend servers is reduced significantly and notification delays are minimised. This feature, therefore, ensures that the lifespan of network cameras, which may otherwise have been challenging to replace, is extended without causing a considerable interruption to operations.